More people hooked on gambling at IRs

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More people hooked on gambling at IRs
December 25th, 2014 | Author: Editorial

Marina Bay Sands

One Hope Centre, which helps people with gambling addiction, reported that there has been a nearly 50% jump in cases last year compared to 2012.
In 2013, One Hope Centre saw 523 addicts seeking counselling.
Its executive director, Mr Dick Lum, said, “Many clients that we counselled felt that it is all right to gamble, since the Government allows the casinos to be opened here, and this is very misleading.”
He added that the entry levy of $100 for locals would not deter Singaporeans, as it still costs less than making a trip to Genting Highlands in Malaysia.
ECMS Consultants, another counselling centre, said they are seeing more younger adults hooked on gambling. Its clinical director, Gerald Goh, said that he has also seen foreign students who go to the casinos every week.
“For them, it’s free to go to the casinos. On average, their parents give them $15,000 to $20,000 pocket money a month, so they go in there to ‘have fun’. But when they lose their pocket money, they start to borrow from friends,” Mr Goh said.
PM Lee: I carry the ultimate responsibility
The government decided to open casinos in Singapore in 2005 when it made the announcement in Parliament.
On 18 April 2005, PM Lee announced the cabinet’s decision to develop 2 casinos and associated hotels and malls in Marina South and Sentosa. The government claimed that the aim of the project was to boost Singapore’s tourism industry.
Instead of calling them casinos outright, the government called them “integrated resorts”. Mr Lee then said [Link]:
We are not considering a casino, but an IR – an integrated resort.
Some of the media coverage of this debate has focused on whether or not the government will approve ‘casinos’. This has given the wrong impression that the IR project is only about building casinos here. We think of a gaming room with slot machines and game tables, perhaps with a hotel and some basic facilities. We think of Macao as it used to be, with a sleazy reputation and triad gangs ruling the streets, or Las Vegas in the movies, with organised crime and money laundering. But that is not what we are looking for.
IRs are quite different. In fact, they should be called leisure, entertainment and business zones.
Mr Lee did acknowledge the downside of having integrated resorts and the concerns expressed by the public. He promised that there would be safeguards to limit the social impact of casino gambling, like the $100 levy imposed on Singaporeans. Also, family members can block a Singaporean from visiting the casinos.
In any case, PM Lee told Parliament that he would ultimately carry the responsibility for the decision to build casinos:
If we do not proceed, we are at serious risk of being left behind by other cities. After weighing the matter carefully, the Cabinet has collectively concluded that we had no choice but to proceed with the IRs. As Prime Minister, I carry the ultimate responsibility for the decision.
At the time, many Singaporeans petitioned against the casinos. Blogger Mr Brown said then [Link]:
I don’t know, I am not sure a petition is going to help change the Government’s mind. It is usually quite firm once its mind is made up. As far as I know, the only way to effect real change is at the ballot box. We make our choices, and we have to live with them, I suppose.
What do you think of Mr Brown’s comments?


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